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At the time of filming, Caitlin admits she is still discovering who the character of Melissa really is. “Her inner workings are so different than mine," says Caitlin, “There is the core of her plot, but then she’s kind of a chameleon for the moment she’s in." This role was meant to be; Caitlin has managed, brilliantly, to breathe life and truth into the complexities of Melissa. Caitlin’s onscreen presence is undeniable, and her ability to draw intensity into a scene, as well as pulling from the surrounding concentration on set, bring a focus into the story as it unfolds. She finds the freedom of working outside the bounds of theatre-scripting—where the actors generally work with the lines as they are written—to be an interesting experience. “This whole production, and Shane, are awesome. He is very cool about letting us work with the lines, which can be great," she says, adding that, as a theatre-trained actress, it also creates an unusual pressure within the moment.
Previous screen work was as Mary Jo Kopechne for a documentary about JFK, produced by a German film company, and she took part in a student film in college. Caitlin is a graduate of the Hartt School, where she majored in musical theatre. She is a talented singer who dances “when necessary." Growing up, she had a peripheral passion for the craft, but it wasn’t until age 15 that she discovered her true love of acting. Friends, needing to fill a casting void, pushed her into the role of Cinderella’s stepmother. For the past ten years she has been an active cast member at the Academy Playhouse in Orleans, MA. She hopes the future sees her as a working actress in a life that brings surprises and variety—as long as she gets to have a couple of dogs too. |
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Making his cinematic debut in the role of Keith, Chris and his natural acting talent hit their stride. His ability to portray his character onscreen and create a dynamic presence, combined with energy and quick humor on the set, are easy qualities for Chris. Attracted to acting at a young age, it was the experience of watching his high school peers in an exciting performance of Of Mice and Men that lit the fire for good. “I was so thrilled seeing this young cast do such a great job—I was totally inspired to do this myself." One favorite character invented in-depth by Chris during college was of a homeless man: “The last person you’d ever want to talk to, but he knew so much, had experienced so many things." The homeless man is a stark contrast to his role for My Intuition. As Chris explains it, Keith is a mixture of success and insecurity, and the sort of person who hasn’t been faced much with hardship. “So when things go wrong for him," says Chris, “it is a repressed, imbalanced side of himself which comes out."
Chris’s acting history includes drama during college, community theatre, and a small part in a film produced in LA. When in high school, Chris won the honor to be part of a theatre program offered at Cape Cod Community College; only one student from each participating school is accepted to this annual event. He claims his most obvious talent lies in becoming the character. “I love to get dressed up for the part and let myself absorb and use the surrounding environment to my character’s advantage."
On this production, Chris says he is now working the dream he’s had since he was a little kid. “I don’t care if it takes all day for the filming—I am working on a set. I love it all." |
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After being turned down for a play 20 years ago, Scott never actively pursued acting again—instead he inadvertently began a course of practicing and honing his theatrical skills, without ever realizing what he was practicing for. “What I used to think of as ADD," says Scott, “was actually the creative side of my brain at work." For most of his life Scott has been inventing voices, characters, and improving upon his acting; he has a personal hobby of reenacting movie scenes, “as a means of dissection, to find out how the actor did what he did."
He has worked as a firefighter, an EMT, a 911 dispatcher, an aerial helicopter photographer and in health care management. He eventually left his work at the hospital to pursue “something outside of traditional career roles." He feels that the common thread which transcended every job (not to mention every management meeting and every relationship) was coming up with jokes, creating characters and voice work. A natural comedy writer, he has begun doing standup. Scott finds humor and improv to be an easy forte. He feels that work in the creative arts allows him the ability to educate, entertain, and draw out emotion in people. What has gotten him both in to and out of trouble will probably prove to be a key to success for years to come--As a successful businessman recently told him "just do what you do!"
His character John in My Intuition is an opposite for Scott to play, but he admits a certain satisfaction that comes from seeing where John’s character flaws take him in the story. As a comedian, Scott has found it interesting to explore a very uncomedic role, quickly adding: “As long as I get to leave him on the set at the end of the day."
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When it comes to acting, Todd’s work ethic is styled on a career. After a friend had him fill in for a show years ago, he began to pursue a love for acting. Along with DJ school and the New England School of Broadcasting, Todd has studied at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC and Bridgewater State College, as well as independently continuing his education through classes. Todd has been on the staff at the Academy of Performing Arts in Orleans, MA for several years, and has starred in a number of roles. Todd was also a co-creator of an improv/comedy sketch group. Currently he teaches the Improv and Character Development classes to middle and high school students at the Academy. It’s hard to believe that as a senior in high school, Todd—part of an act that went to competition—was told by the judges: “Never act again."
Todd adores comedy and loves making people laugh. He finds it easy to step out of the bounds of a script, and makes the most of creative latitude. He laughs: “If you want me to play with it, I’ll play." Even in his role as the insufferable, tragic boyfriend Steve in My Intuition, Todd manages to shed some amusement onto a character none of us would want to be (“He’s fun to play," says Todd, “Steve views himself as everybody’s friend, which he’s not, and sees life as something glamorous, which it’s not. He’s the loud guy at the bar I used to kick out.").
When it comes to this line of work, Todd explains that he feels called to the challenge of acting, of figuring out how to be the person that he needs to be. Doing this for film, he puts simply, gives him a “cloud-9 feeling."
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For her role as Amanda in My Intuition, Rebecca brings a history of acting which began, at the age of 4, at the Academy of Performing Arts in Orleans, MA, where she continues as a principal today. “My heart is in community theatre here on the Cape," she says, explaining how she prioritizes her stage craft in conjunction with her family life and her career with Rabideau Publishing. Acting is in Rebecca's blood; her grandfather was instrumental in founding the Academy. In ’06 and ’07 Rebecca had a starring role in a documentary on one family’s history of Cape Theatre. An accomplished singer and dancer, Rebecca is most at home in musicals and live theatre. She says that she is generally cast as the ingénue, since the girl-next-door character fits her so easily. For this reason comic roles evade her. “I do also love comedy," she says, “but I never get to do it!"
A consummate professional, Rebecca focuses on keeping her portrayals consistently real. She stresses the importance of being a part of who she is playing, but not vice versa. As she puts it: “I don’t want to be the whiney bitch—I just want to play one on TV."
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Originally from Ashland, MA and now hailing from way up north in Portland, Maine, Michael Antonellis joined the cast of My Intuition on Cape Cod as the news reporter. The pivotal scene in which he reports his station’s disturbing news “live," happened on a cold, damp day in mid-March—the kind of day nobody would choose for doing careful work. Michael, however, was fabulous in his role, delivering a character who was present, articulate, and believable. What is surprising is that, according to Michael, he has never acted before—but he’s always known that he could. “I am very confident and willing to try, no matter how long something takes," says Michael, adding that one cannot have doubts: “Even if you are the only one not doubting."
Delivering lines is not entirely foreign work to Michael, who for the past 13 years has been a play-by-play radio announcer for minor league baseball--the previous five seasons with the Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A affiliate team to the Boston Red Sox)--who in his career he has done some time on television. Still, he’d always wanted to try acting and was discovered by Shane at an audition for My Intuition. Michael says that working with Shane is a “phenomenal experience," and that Shane’s been a great mentor, open to questions and allowing him to help shape his own lines. “I’m all about working hard, and I am a movie NUT," he stresses, declaring that he absolutely loves entertainers. And besides that, he says, “It has always been my goal to have my name in the credits." Well then, it seems that Michael has scored a home run of his own now. |
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Charles McIntyre - “Mr. Clemente"
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Britni Ketchen - “the lunch waitress"
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Alene Sibley - “the receptionist"
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Melinda’s first stage performance was singing “Away in the Manger” to an audience of 750; so began a lifetime of theater involvement. As a child she tap-danced regularly on the Jack Sherick show, televised regionally in Columbus, Ohio. College theater productions came later, at a time when Melinda discovered her leaning as a comedienne. Today Melinda is doing stand up comedy and is a partner in a sketch comedy duo. She is an advocate for opening theater up to be enjoyed by all ages, and to dispel the notion that theater is for the elite.
She served on the Cape’s Boch Center Board of Directors and in the early 90’s was a founder of First Night Cape Cod presented by the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, serving also on their Board of Directors. Melinda has taught community children’s theater, directed numerous plays, dinner theaters and variety shows all around Cape Cod. Most recently, she became a graduate of the Improv Asylum in Boston Training Center. Melinda joined the cast of My Intuition as Mrs. Murray on an unseasonably hot, 80 degree day, during which she endured her heavy Christmastime coat like a trouper, for as many takes as it took.
Melinda is married to artist Joe Gallant and has 3 married children and “six adorable grandchildren.”
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